SAITM Will be Backed by Govt – Kiriella

Speaking at the weekly Cabinet media briefing yesterday (8), Minister Kiriella said, the previous week’s Court Order, that recognized the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM), could have been avoided if the Sri Lanka Medical Council had agreed to grant the graduates the opportunity to take the Examination for Registration to Practice Medicine in Sri Lanka (ERPM) or the Act 16 Examination.

The government has accepted the Court ruling on SAITM and will do whatever is necessary to assist it in the near future, said Minister of Higher Education Lakshman Kiriella.

Kiriella further said, he had met SLMC President Prof. Carlo Fonseka in order to reach an agreement on the SAITM matter,   before the Court case was filed against the SLMC  by the two students seeking registration to practice medicine in Sri Lanka and  asked Prof. Fonseka to allow the first batch of graduates of SAITM to sit the Act 16 examination, in order to bring the entire SAITM controversy to end. But , the Professor  Carlo Fonseka had refused to do so.

Now however, since the Court ruling has come, the SLMC won’t be able to do anything other than accept it. The only way they can challenge it is to appeal to the Supreme Court.”